Report: Plea deal offered to accused Cleveland kidnapper

A plea deal has been offered to the man accused of kidnapping three Cleveland women and raping them repeatedly while he held them in captivity at his home during the past decade, according to a Cleveland TV station.

If Ariel Castro, 53, of Cleveland, accepts the deal, he would avoid the death penalty, according to a report by WKYC-TV in Cleveland. The deal, however, has not been finalized, according to the TV station. The station reports a hearing, during which he would accept the offer, was to be held Friday.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty is continuing to negotiate with defense attorneys for a possible plea bargain for Castro, McGinty?s spokeswoman Maria Russo said. She could not confirm if a formal deal had been offered to Castro.

Phone calls to Castro?s defense attorneys were not immediately returned. A spokeswoman for Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Russo said a hearing had not yet been scheduled for Friday.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys met in Russo?s courtroom Wednesday, and said they were working toward a plea deal.

A trial for Castro is scheduled for Aug. 5. He has pleaded not guilty to 977 charges, including murder, rape and kidnapping. According to the indictments, he is accused of beating and starving one of the women to force her to miscarry ? a charge that could lead to the death penalty.

The women ? Gina DeJesus, 23, Michelle Knight, 32, and Amanda Berry, 27 ? were freed from Castro?s home on the west side of Cleveland on May 6, along with Berry?s 6-year-old daughter, who was fathered by Castro during her captivity.

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/plea-deal-offered-to-accused-cleveland-kidnapper-ariel-castro--165830942.html

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